“Councils are being forced to top up the Scottish Welfare Fund, which has been cut in real-terms since 2013, in order to meet increasing demand. More and more Scots are being pulled into crisis and a greater number of people have been forced to turn to this lifeline than ever before.

“It isn’t right that as the number of Scots needing crisis payments for food continues to soar, the fund for emergency payments hasn’t gone up in six years. The Scottish Welfare Fund provides a safety net for those who can’t put food on the table and it has to be strengthened to reflect the growing demand.

“Our research shows that for the system to be more effective, councils need more funding in order to help reach everyone who needs emergency help, as well as to refer people to longer-term support which could help prevent them reaching crisis point again.

“Funding provisions for local authorities must now reflect the growing number of people who are being pulled into crisis and need this emergency cash to stay afloat.”

100% of this year’s SWF budget, including last year’s underspend, but excluding additional funds from local authorities, was spent by 31 March 2019 (stats bulletin page 2)

The most common Crisis Grant expenditure was on food, essential heating expenses and other living expenses; since 2017/18 the number of awards of food has increased by 8% (page 18)

Since the scheme began in April 2013, over half – 182,530 – of all awards have gone to single person households (54%), and over a fifth to single parent households (22%) (Table 62)

A Menu for Change is a partnership project run by Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland, Nourish Scotland, Oxfam Scotland and the Poverty Alliance, and funded by the National Lottery Community Fund. It aims to tackle the causes of food insecurity by working in communities and providing practical evidence-based research.

Food bank use continues to rise and nearly one in ten people in Scotland are worried about where their next meal will come from. If you find yourself in this position, you can ask for a Crisis Grant: money given out by your local council through the Scottish Welfare Fund.

The Fund is a vital and welcome safety net in Scotland for those experiencing financial crisis. It is designed to provide access to quick, non-repayable cash for those who run out of money for food and other essentials.

We have examined how it operates across Scotland by speaking to people who have applied to the Fund, and those who work for local authorities administering it.

Encouragingly, on a council-by-council basis there are numerous examples of good practice. While they are providing this help in different ways, we need to see such practice rolled out everywhere, to ensure that everybody who finds themselves needing emergency cash is supported quickly and effectively.

We discovered that many councils were unable to adhere to the statutory guidance issued by the Scottish Government, like offering in-person applications, because they lack both the staffing and the physical space. Worryingly, people who need help may not know the Fund exists. Others may not be able to reach it because they do not have access to a phone.

Our report includes recommendations designed to remove such barriers, building on the good work being done by different councils across Scotland. That means, for example, ensuring people get their grants in cash rather than restrictive vouchers, fast-tracking decision-making, and ensuring people applying for Crisis Grants are also referred to other organisations who can offer longer-term help.

For this to be replicated by every council, the Scottish Welfare Fund needs to increase. It has been frozen since it was introduced in 2013, meaning a real-terms cut.

This Fund should be a key source of emergency support for everyone who is pulled into the position where they need rapid financial help. But there are too many hurdles in the way and, while councils must do all they can to remove them, without more funding these hurdles are likely to remain.

This opinion piece first appeared in the Herald newspaper on 20 June 2019.

]]>https://menuforchange.org.uk/breaking-down-the-hurdles-in-accessing-emergency-cash/feed/1‘Strengthening the Safety Net’ – New Scottish Welfare Fund report releasedhttps://menuforchange.org.uk/strengthening-the-safety-net/
Thu, 20 Jun 2019 08:38:46 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31615‘Strengthening the Safety Net’, a new report by A Menu for Change into the Scottish Welfare Fund, has been released today.

The system for administering emergency payments used by people who have run out of money for food and other essentials could be improved but needs more cash, according to a new report published today.

Researchers examined practice across Scotland and found that the Scottish Welfare Fund is delivered in different ways in different parts of the country. Based on these findings, they have set out a series of recommendations on how the Fund could be run to help those facing food insecurity access payments more easily.

The report finds that some local authorities do not advertise the Scottish Welfare Fund as much as they would wish because if it operated at full demand, they would not be able to cope.

Unlike in other parts of the UK, the Scottish Welfare Fund serves as a much needed and welcome additional safety in Scotland by issuing Crisis Grant payments, but its budget has remained static since it was introduced in 2013, representing a real-terms cut.

Yet there are worrying levels of food insecurity and the number of people forced to use a food bank continues to grow. In March, research showed almost double the number of food parcels are handed out in Scotland than previously thought, with nearly half a million distributed between April 2017 and September 2018. It comes after Scottish Government data showed 8 percent of adults in Scotland are worried they will run out of food.

The Scottish Welfare Fund is administered by councils using funding from the Scottish Government and is comprised of a programme and administration budget. Many local authorities are having to top up their administration allocation with money or wider resources just to continue distributing current grants.

In the report, A Menu for Change, which is campaigning to tackle the causes of food insecurity, recommends how councils can remove barriers to get money into the pockets of people who need emergency support as quickly as possible.

Interviews with staff from local authorities across Scotland highlighted examples of good practice, but also found that most councils do not offer face-to-face applications for vulnerable clients – despite this being in national guidance – because they lack the staff resource and space.

By paying applicants in cash, better referring clients to wider support and giving decisions over the phone, researchers found that people would get the help they needed more quickly.

While A Menu for Change wants councils to do everything they can to adopt best practice immediately, today’s report recommends increasing the administration component of the Fund so that councils can reach more people and support them better through, for example, investing in more staff capacity. As a result, more people should be able to apply for the grants. Therefore, the report also calls for the programme budget to be increased to meet anticipated higher levels of uptake.

Today’s report highlights evidence given by the Scottish Government to a Scottish Parliamentary committee, stating there are no plans to increase funding levels from the existing £38 million per year (£33m programme, £5m administration), while noting the existing programme budget is under-spent3.

The recommendation comes after The Poverty and Inequality Commission recently highlighted that investment in social security is one of the biggest ways of reducing poverty4.

David Hilber, Project Officer at A Menu for Change, said:

“If you’ve run out of money, the Scottish Welfare Fund should be there to ensure you can get cash to buy food and other essentials, but our research has found barriers along the way. Too few people know that the fund exists and councils say they can’t afford to properly advertise it because of the potential scale of the demand.

“It is clear from speaking to council staff working across Scotland that they are doing their best to support those in need, and want to do more. We’ve identified a set of practical steps that local authorities can take to help get this emergency money into people’s pockets when they need it most.

“While councils across Scotland are doing great work in really trying circumstances, ultimately more cash is needed to properly resource this lifeline and to put our recommendations into place.

“These Crisis Grants could help stop a lot more people from needing to turn to emergency food aid, but there needs to be the money for councils to give out the fund properly.

“While the pressures forcing people into the position where they can’t afford food often aren’t coming from councils or the Scottish Government, this Fund should be available for immediate support.

“Those facing financial crisis in Scotland should know about the Scottish Welfare Fund and not face unnecessary difficulties in accessing the help they are entitled to. Ultimately, if more people were directed to the Fund, more people could get the cash they need before they need to turn to emergency food aid.”

Press contact: 0141 285 8874

]]>A stranger in a strange land who has run out of money for foodhttps://menuforchange.org.uk/a-stranger-in-a-strange-land-who-has-run-out-of-money-for-food/
https://menuforchange.org.uk/a-stranger-in-a-strange-land-who-has-run-out-of-money-for-food/#respondWed, 08 May 2019 16:19:41 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31573As an immigrant myself, I can tell you, being an outsider isn’t always easy. No matter how long you’ve been in your new country or how welcoming the people are, there is always a nagging feeling that you don’t quite belong. There are cultural norms you’ll never truly be a part of or fully understand. And there are things back home that can never be fully replicated here.

But more than cultural differences, there are very real legal consequences of being a person from abroad. One thing that can be particularly harsh for some of us who come to live in the UK from elsewhere is the lack of access to social security.

For the last five years, I have had a note inscribed on my immigration documents: ‘No Recourse to Public Funds’. Not all immigrants have this condition, but those of us that do are typically* unable to access a long list of public funds. Essentially, most means-tested benefits (i.e. benefits that take your income into account like universal credit and housing benefit) and disability benefits are off the table.

Citizens of EEA countries will not have this condition on their immigration status if they move to the UK, but they are not automatically eligible for means-tested benefits. Most benefit claimants must have what is called a ‘right to reside’. Proving you have a right to reside when you are not a UK citizen or permanent resident can be very difficult and time-consuming, with applications and appeals sometimes going on for months. And sometimes you simply don’t have one.

So, what happens if someone with no recourse to public funds or an EEA national with no right to reside runs out of money for food? Is charity the only thing standing between them and hunger?

The short answer is no. There are things you can try if you find yourself in this situation or are helping someone who is.

Firstly, the Scottish Welfare Fund does not have a ‘right to reside’ requirement.** If you are an EEA national, but you have been told you cannot get DWP benefits because you don’t have the correct ‘right to reside’, you CAN still access the Scottish Welfare Fund for a short term cash grant.

Unfortunately, the Scottish Welfare Fund does count as ‘public funds’ so those of us with no recourse to public funds are usually unable to apply to the Scottish Welfare Fund. However, social work has a duty to promote welfare in their area under section 12 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968. This means vulnerable adults who have run out of money for food can contact their local authority social work department and request help to buy food.

Similarly, families with children can request assistance under section 22 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. These payments are not public funds, so someone with no recourse to public funds can request these without worrying about their immigration status. These are solely for when all other alternatives have been exhausted, but they are an option for someone who is unable to access DWP benefits or the Scottish Welfare Fund and has no other way of accessing money for food.

It can be tough being an immigrant, but it is comforting to know that while we try to make a new life in our new home, there are options if things get especially hard. No one should have to rely on charity to feed themselves and their family.

Author: David Hilber, Project Officer

* If you are not an EEA citizen but have a right to reside in the UK (e.g. you are the family member of an EEA national with a right to reside in the UK), any conditions on your immigration status (including no recourse to public funds) do not have any effect so long as that right to reside remains
** Section 6.11 of the SWF Statutory Guidance

]]>https://menuforchange.org.uk/a-stranger-in-a-strange-land-who-has-run-out-of-money-for-food/feed/0People living on cups of tea and thin air deserve faster action on povertyhttps://menuforchange.org.uk/people-living-on-cups-of-tea-and-thin-air-deserve-faster-action-on-poverty/
https://menuforchange.org.uk/people-living-on-cups-of-tea-and-thin-air-deserve-faster-action-on-poverty/#respondThu, 28 Mar 2019 09:03:27 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31564The rise in food bank numbers is already symbolic of our failing social security system. Yet the appalling scale of this unfolding human tragedy in a country as rich as Scotland is only now becoming clear.

We’ve known for some time that food bank use has been growing in Scotland, with the Trussell Trust, which runs a network of 118 food banks here, providing regular statistics on the number of food parcels it distributes. Their most recent figures show that between April 2017 and September 2018, they handed out 258,606 food parcels.

What we didn’t know, until now, is that these figures only tell half of the story. There were also at least 94 independent food banks in Scotland giving out food during the same time period, but nobody knew how many parcels they’d handed out.

That’s why A Menu for Change began working in partnership with our friends at the Independent Food Aid Network to document how many emergency food parcels were given out by independent food banks across Scotland.

The results are staggering.

Eighty-four of Scotland’s independent food banks reported that they had distributed 221,977 food parcels during that 18-month period, taking the combined known total to 480,583 – nearly half a million.

Though they provide a fuller picture of food bank use than we’ve had before, these figures still only represent the tip of the iceberg in terms of measuring the increasing level of hunger in Scotland.

Not everyone turns to a food bank in times of crisis. Through A Menu for Change, we’ve met people who often find other ways to cope. Kerry*, a mum in East Ayrshire, talked about surviving on cups of tea so she could ensure her child didn’t go to bed with an empty tummy.

This hidden hunger is much more difficult to document, but last year the Scottish Government for the first-time published statistics which revealed that eight percent of people in Scotland said they’d faced hunger. That’s nearly half a million people; almost equivalent to the entire population of Edinburgh.

Anyone who’s been to the supermarket lately knows this isn’t a problem of supply; the shelves are stuffed full of food. This is a problem of poverty.

And the thing about poverty? It isn’t inevitable. It can be fixed. But the fixes require political will and leadership.

Of course, we know that much of the power to address many of the drivers of food bank use – problems with the UK benefits system, low wages and insecure contracts – does not rest in Scotland.

But with the transfer of a raft of new social security powers to Holyrood, Scottish Ministers can do more to help people facing hardship.

The Scottish Government has pledged to top up the incomes of Scotland’s poorest families in 2022. This promise is hugely welcome because the long-term solution to tackling hunger in Scotland isn’t supplying food to those who can’t afford to buy their own, it’s raising people’s income. If we’re going to prevent people from having to turn to food banks, we need to make sure they’ve got more money in their pockets. The Government’s proposed income supplement could help do just that.

But a promise to implement the supplement in three years’ time offers little help to those struggling to feed their family right now.

As our statistics show, a staggering number of people in Scotland are worrying today about where their next meal is coming from. Perhaps when your own fridge is full it’s hard to feel the same sense of urgency to tackle hunger than if you’re faced with it every day; in your empty kitchen or inside the walls of a food bank.

We know that the Scottish Government wants what we all want; to stop food banks from becoming a permanent feature in our country. But the longer it waits to act, the more people will be turning to food banks as a last resort.

Scottish Ministers can do better than tell Kerry that the absolute best they can do is to help her in 2022. They must give people living on cups of tea and thin air more to sustain them. And they must do it now.

]]>https://menuforchange.org.uk/people-living-on-cups-of-tea-and-thin-air-deserve-faster-action-on-poverty/feed/0New figures reveal number of food bank parcels given out in Scotland almost double previously known figurehttps://menuforchange.org.uk/new-figures-reveal-number-of-food-bank-parcels-given-out-in-scotland-almost-double-previously-known-figure/
https://menuforchange.org.uk/new-figures-reveal-number-of-food-bank-parcels-given-out-in-scotland-almost-double-previously-known-figure/#respondWed, 27 Mar 2019 09:30:56 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31562Nearly half a million parcels given out in 18 months

Shocking new figures published today have exposed an alarming picture of food bank use in Scotland, with nearly double the number of food parcels being given out than previously thought.

The new data, collected by the Independent Food Aid Network and A Menu for Change, for the first time reveals the startling number of food parcels given out by independently run food banks across the country.

The data shows that between April 2017 and September 2018, 84 independent food banks distributed 221,977 emergency food packages. Previously, centralised data for the number of food parcels collectively distributed by independent food banks hasn’t existed.

The numbers of three-day food supplies given out by independently run food banks build on existing figures, published by the Trussell Trust, which showed their network of 118 food banks distributed 258,606 food parcels during the same time period.

The new combined statistics mean that an estimated total of at least 480,583 food parcels – nearly half a million – were distributed by both Trussell Trust and independent food banks across Scotland between April 2017 and September 2018.

Sabine Goodwin, Coordinator of the Independent Food Aid Network, led the research. She said: “These statistics are deeply troubling, and provide yet more evidence of the growing number of people in Scotland who are unable to put food on the table.

“They also demonstrate the enormous collective effort of independent food bank volunteers and staff who are doing all they can to try to prevent people in their communities from facing hunger. Of course, we and they all know the long-term solution to hunger isn’t giving out food; it’s raising income. People should be helped financially well before they find themselves having to turn to a food bank as a last resort.”

The true scale of food bank provision in Scotland is even higher than today’s combined figures reveal, as a small number of independent food banks operational in Scotland during the research period were unable to contribute data to the Independent Food Aid Network and A Menu for Change’s joint project.

Experts are also warning that data on food parcel distribution still only provides a partial picture of the number of people in Scotland who are struggling to feed themselves and their families; with most people choosing to use other ways of coping, like skipping meals, rather than use a food bank. Last year, figures released by the Scottish Government revealed that one in five single parents in Scotland had faced hunger.

Kirkcaldy Foodbank operates multiple venues where people can access emergency food supplies. Joyce Leggate, Chair of the Foodbank, said: “Today’s statistics represent a worrying and growing number of people across Scotland who are struggling to make ends meet. Every day in Kirkcaldy, we meet people who are being driven to our doors because of problems with the benefits system. A third of the food parcels we give out go to families with children; the innocent victims of a system which is pushing people into debt, despair and poverty.

“We hope that today’s figures shine a light on the previously hidden role independent food banks are playing in picking up the pieces of a failing social safety net, and spur policy makers into taking decisive action to stop food banks like ours from becoming entrenched in Scottish society.”

Research shows that problems with the UK wide benefits system is one of the key drivers of food bank use, but Scottish campaigners from A Menu for Change say that the Scottish Government must urgently use its new social security powers to help prevent people in Scotland from being pushed further into poverty.

Scottish Ministers have promised to bring in a new income supplement by 2022 to help Scotland’s poorest families, but campaigners say people facing hardship can’t afford to wait three years for this extra support.

Dr. Mary Anne MacLeod, Research and Policy Officer at A Menu for Change, said: “These figures are truly shameful in rich Scotland and they should make for deeply uncomfortable reading for our political leaders: the problem of rising levels of hunger in Scotland is much worse than previously known.

“The Scottish Government should be commended for its plans to help families put food on the table through the new income supplement, but promises to help people in three years’ time are of little comfort to parents whose cupboards are empty right now.

“If the Scottish Government wants to reduce the number of people facing hunger, it must urgently bring forward its plans to top up the incomes of Scotland’s poorest families from 2022.”

A Menu for Change is a partnership project run by Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland, Nourish Scotland, Oxfam Scotland and the Poverty Alliance, and funded by the Big Lottery Fund. It aims to reduce the need for food banks.

The Independent Food Aid Network supports and connects a range of independent frontline food aid organisations while advocating on their behalf at a national level. Their vision is of a country that doesn’t need emergency food aid and in which good food is accessible to all.

IFAN has been responsible for the identification of at least 803 independent food banks and food parcel distributors across the UK – foodaidnetwork.org.uk/mapping

In September 2018, the Scottish Government for the first-time published statistics on the number of people in Scotland facing hunger. Its data revealed that one in five – 21% – of single parents in Scotland had faced hunger, with 16-44 year olds and people living in poor areas most likely to be going hungry. Read more: https://menuforchange.org.uk/response-to-the-scottish-health-survey/

In March 2021, the UK Government will publish inaugural statistics on the number of people facing hunger across the UK through the DWP’s Family Resources Survey.

]]>https://menuforchange.org.uk/new-figures-reveal-number-of-food-bank-parcels-given-out-in-scotland-almost-double-previously-known-figure/feed/0Growing numbers turn to Scottish Welfare Fund for crisis supporthttps://menuforchange.org.uk/growing-numbers-turn-to-scottish-welfare-fund-for-crisis-support/
https://menuforchange.org.uk/growing-numbers-turn-to-scottish-welfare-fund-for-crisis-support/#respondTue, 29 Jan 2019 12:22:47 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31552New figures released by the Scottish government today show a growing number of people are turning to the Scottish Welfare Fund for support to cover essential living costs such as heating and eating.

The Scottish Welfare Fund comprises of Community Care Grants – which help people to live independently – and Crisis Grants, which provide a safety net in a disaster or emergency.

The statistics show that from July to September 2018, Local Authorities received 44,530 applications for Crisis Grants – up 4% from the previous year. Yet the total number of awards made actually decreased by 1% to 28,950.

Clackmannanshire and Angus saw significant spikes in the number of crisis grant awards; up 84% and 71% respectively.

However, A Menu for Change is concerned that the Scottish Welfare Fund’s budget has not been increased since its launch, despite rising inflation.

Responding to the figures, Dr. Mary Anne MacLeod, Research and Policy Officer at A Menu for Change said: “These statistics are extremely concerning. It’s absolutely unacceptable that in a wealthy country like Scotland such large number of people simply don’t have enough money to heat their homes or put food on the table.

“What’s worrying is that the safety net which is supposed to catch people – the Scottish Welfare Fund – has had its budget cut in real terms year on year. The Scottish government must urgently address this shortfall and make sure the Scottish Welfare Fund has the support and resources it needs to help prevent more people from being pushed further into poverty.”

A Menu for Change is keen to work with local authorities and the Scottish government to ensure the Scottish Welfare Fund is able to help everyone unable to afford food.

A total of 316,095 low income households have accessed emergency funding to help with the costs of essentials such as food and heating since 2013.

]]>https://menuforchange.org.uk/growing-numbers-turn-to-scottish-welfare-fund-for-crisis-support/feed/0Mapping the bigger picture: how many emergency food parcels are given out in Scotland?https://menuforchange.org.uk/mapping-the-bigger-picture-how-many-emergency-food-parcels-are-given-out-in-scotland/
https://menuforchange.org.uk/mapping-the-bigger-picture-how-many-emergency-food-parcels-are-given-out-in-scotland/#respondFri, 14 Dec 2018 14:20:11 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31545Just how many emergency food parcels are given out across Scotland a year?

The short answer?

We don’t know.

We do know that Trussell Trust food banks represent around 56% of the Scottish food bank picture and gave out 170, 625 parcels to adults and children from April 2017 to April 2018.

However, the collective scale of food parcel distribution within the independent sector, the remaining 44% of the food bank picture in Scotland, is unknown.

That’s why the Independent Food Aid Network has joined forces with A Menu for Change to collect data on independent food parcel distribution across Scotland. This data will provide us vital intelligence on just how many people in Scotland can’t afford to buy food and are turning to food banks.

We’re delighted that 77% of all Scottish independent food bank venues (69 out of 89) are working with us, especially because we know these organisations are working tirelessly every week to provide emergency food parcels across 18 local authority areas.

We have met with representatives from a variety of independent food banks and food parcel distributors to discuss how we’ll work together to collect food parcel statistics.

The engagement and enthusiasm has been inspiring. As Lorraine McCormick from Oban’s Hope Kitchen said: “It was lovely to meet people doing the same work as us. We are really excited to be taking part in the project and it has already made us think about how we collect our data.”

These meetings have also provided opportunities for independent food bank managers and coordinators to meet each other, often for the first time, and to share immediate concerns and best practice. We’re really grateful to everyone who took the time to come along, despite often facing a long journey.

We’ll be collating information across the sector on the numbers of parcels distributed and the numbers of children and adults helped, with room to collate further data if available. We hope to be able to release data on the number of parcels distributed and the number of adults and children helped by independent food banks and food parcel distributors during 2017 and 2018 soon. And we’ll be collecting data for publication for the first quarter of 2019 from January.

Claire Slight and Anne McCormack of the Broke not Broken Food Bank based in Kinross summed up the significance of this work:

“As with many other independent food banks, our aim is to be redundant. Seeing the data that has up until now been missing from the public realm will be a real wake-up call, we hope, to society and in particular the system that has become reliant on food banks.

“It will enable a true reflection of the huge hole in the system the food banks have been filling which has been hit time and time again by budget cuts, not only in terms of in-work poverty, child poverty and food poverty, but also with regards to mental health support, addiction support and care for the most vulnerable in our communities.”

Charity Pritchard, of Edinburgh City Mission’s Basics Banks, agreed, adding: “This project is vital to ending food poverty. We need to work together with organisations like these to enable a joint approach for nationwide change. The voices of those we support need to be heard and represented in discussions about ending food poverty in Scotland.”

Sabine Goodwin works as the Coordinator of the Independent Food Aid Network and has been responsible for the identification and mapping of independent food banks/food parcel distributors across the whole of the UK.

Responding to the announcement, Polly Jones, Project Manager of A Menu for Change, said: “Across Scotland, a fifth of single parents are wondering where their next meal is coming from and this budget fails to provide any immediate answers.

“It’s particularly disappointing that Ministers appear to have missed the chance to properly resource the Scottish Government’s own emergency pot, the Scottish Welfare Fund, which hasn’t had a penny more since it began in 2013. It is vital that the Fund can provide a lifeline for people who can’t afford to feed themselves or their families.

“It’s time to prioritise preventing poverty, and ensuring that anyone who falls through the gaps is caught by Scotland’s social security safety net.”

]]>https://menuforchange.org.uk/scottish-budget-provides-no-immediate-answers-to-families-facing-hunger/feed/0Scottish government must help tackle ‘winter of misery’ exacerbated by Universal Credit roll outhttps://menuforchange.org.uk/scottish-government-must-help-tackle-winter-of-misery-exacerbated-by-universal-credit-roll-out/
https://menuforchange.org.uk/scottish-government-must-help-tackle-winter-of-misery-exacerbated-by-universal-credit-roll-out/#respondWed, 21 Nov 2018 09:09:44 +0000https://menuforchange.org.uk/?p=31538Campaigners are calling for the Scottish government to do more to help tackle the suffering caused by changes to the UK benefit system, including the roll out of Universal Credit, in the run up to Christmas.

The government has already pledged to use its new welfare powers to top up the incomes of Scottish families by 2022, but campaigners say ministers must act with far greater urgency to deliver on their promise through the forthcoming Scottish budget.

The campaigners’ call comes as A Menu for Change, a partnership project run by Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland, Nourish Scotland, Oxfam Scotland and Poverty Alliance, tonight will be setting up a food bank inside Holyrood; staging the Scottish premier of theatre production Food Bank As It Is.

The play, written by the manager of a food bank in London Tara Osman, will bring the voices and experiences of food bank users to the Scottish Parliament. 52% rises in food bank use have been documented across the UK where Universal Credit has been rolled out.

Polly Jones, Project Manager of A Menu for Change, said the play has been designed to galvanise Scottish politicians to use all their powers to prevent people from facing hunger, as well as condemning policies made by the UK government.

Jones said: “It’s appalling that in a rich country like Scotland, more and more people are turning to food banks because they don’t have enough money to buy food; a problem which is being exacerbated by the disastrous roll out of Universal Credit.

“There’s no question this is crisis driven by UK government cuts but it’s important to remember that the Scottish government isn’t powerless to tackle the effects of policies made at Westminster. If we’re going to avoid a winter of misery with countless people facing hunger then it’s time for Ministers to live up to their promise to top up he incomes of hard up families across Scotland.”

The hard-hitting play, which has previously been performed across England and Wales, will debut at the Scottish Parliament and will then be performed in both Edinburgh and Glasgow. Playwright Tara Osman has adapted the play based on A Menu for Change’s research to reflect the real-life stories of Scottish food bank users, who will be represented by Scottish actors.

Osman said she hoped to shine a light on the misery faced by people facing hunger in Scotland. She said: “For the first time, this play brings the voices of food bank users to the corridors of power. It pulls no punches, and nor should it. It’s a disgrace that anyone is facing hunger when supermarket shelves are stuffed full of food. Hopefully Food Bank As It Is underlines the urgency and necessity of political action to tackle hunger.”

A Menu for Change is a partnership project run by Child Poverty Action Group Scotland, Nourish Scotland, Oxfam Scotland and the Poverty Alliance, and funded by the Big Lottery Fund. It aims to reduce the need for food banks.

Food Bank As It Is will be staged in the Members’ Restaurant from 6pm on Wednesday 21 November. For press tickets contact Rebecca Lozza: RLozza1@Oxfam.org.uk

In September, the Scottish Government for the first time published statistics on the number of people in Scotland facing hunger. Its data revealed that 8% of Scots had faced hunger, with 16-44 year olds and people living in poor areas most likely to be going hungry. Read more: https://menuforchange.org.uk/response-to-the-scottish-health-survey/